Second person wanted on animal cruelty charge remains at large

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - A second person wanted on animal cruelty charges in the beating and death of a dog found alive in a trash bin had not been apprehended by late Wednesday afternoon, Waynesboro Police Chief Ray Shultz said.

In another development in the case, officials from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in Norfolk, Va., wrote to Franklin County District Attorney Jack Nelson asking that the case be vigorously prosecuted.

Nelson was out Wednesday afternoon, but a spokeswoman in his office said it was too soon to consider such a request. "We haven't looked at the case yet," she said.

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Waynesboro residents Sharon K. Black, 43, of 807 W. Main St., and her boyfriend, Dallas Davis, 36, formerly of the same address, were charged with animal cruelty, court records said.

Black was issued a summons to appear. She was free pending a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 4.

Waynesboro police have issued a warrant for Davis, whose whereabouts were unknown.

Both face prison terms of up to five years if convicted. Davis faces an additional term of up to five years on charges of making terroristic threats.

According to court records, he threatened to kill Black and her son if she didn't dispose of the dog, a small white shepherd mix puppy, that he said he had killed.

Black told police she put the dog in a trash bin behind the Landis Gardner plant on Sixth Street where she worked, court records said.

A security guard found the dog - alive and whimpering - on Jan. 11. It could have been in the trash bin for more than four days, court records said.

A veterinarian who treated the dog said its front legs had been broken with a hard object.

Davis told Black he killed the dog when he got tired of dealing with it, according to allegations in court records. He ordered her to throw it in the trash bin where she worked, court records said.

The dog, which Antietam Humane Society officials named Hope, died Jan. 13.

PETA officials offered a $2,500 reward in the case.

Dan Paden, PETA spokesman, said Wednesday the reward was still in place and would be paid to anyone who played a key role in getting a conviction. Police do not receive rewards, he said.

Paden said PETA sends letters to prosecutors and offers rewards in animal abuse cases that generate public outcries.

PETA is an international organization with 800,000 members, Paden said.